This double-disc set compiles the complete material from three LPs and one EP released during the Swans' early years: 1984 through 1986. The band's general sound is that of a grungey electric guitar dirge, angry and sullen... more &raquo, not unlike a cross between a slowed down Killing Joke and Lou Reed's Street Hassle. The material is slow and methodical, somewhat spartan, with raspy semi-spoken vocals coming across like some anti-Western mantra. The first, earlier disc is the most stripped down--fuzzed guitars and bass, with a plodding beat. The second disc, although maintaining the same style, features a larger band and fuller sound, with occasional keyboards, female voices, and more complex drum patterns. The Swans' music is very unsettling, seeming at once angry and heavily medicated, as if the composer's rage is being filtered through a haze of antidepressants. It is also very good at conveying this combination of fog and emotion on a visceral level. --Michael C. Mahan&laquo less

Synopsis

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This double-disc set compiles the complete material from three LPs and one EP released during the Swans' early years: 1984 through 1986. The band's general sound is that of a grungey electric guitar dirge, angry and sullen, not unlike a cross between a slowed down Killing Joke and Lou Reed's Street Hassle. The material is slow and methodical, somewhat spartan, with raspy semi-spoken vocals coming across like some anti-Western mantra. The first, earlier disc is the most stripped down--fuzzed guitars and bass, with a plodding beat. The second disc, although maintaining the same style, features a larger band and fuller sound, with occasional keyboards, female voices, and more complex drum patterns. The Swans' music is very unsettling, seeming at once angry and heavily medicated, as if the composer's rage is being filtered through a haze of antidepressants. It is also very good at conveying this combination of fog and emotion on a visceral level. --Michael C. Mahan

CD Reviews

Sheer misanthropy

S. Holliday | 08/27/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"One point I want to get out of the way is that the music of Swans is really NOT for everyone. Anyone looking for a positive, upbeat message is going to be sorely disappointed here. Swans are perhaps the most bleak, depressing, unfriendly band that ever existed. In other words, they are the band that most metal groups want to be. Their music defies easy categorization. The music on the first disc is like a brutal, abrasive electric dirge, with molasses slow drumbeats and heavy guitars, M. Gira's raspy, deep voice spewing bile over it all. The second disc is much more industrial in tone, and by industrial I mean Throbbing Gristle, not nine inch nails. It is slightly more accessible, with some beats occasionally approaching a danceable speed, but the lyrics are, if anything, even more caustic and disturbing than those on Cop/Young God. I don't really know what audience would truly appreciate this music. Most punks would find it too slow and repetitive. Most goths would dislike the atonality and lack of melody. Perhaps Flipper fans would get into it. It is worth seeking out if you are an adventurous listener, and are not easily depressed."

Angry Gnostics Discover Electricity and Make Ears Bleed

C. Gardner | Washington D.C., D.C. United States | 10/30/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"No pain, no gain. Swans were genuinely one of a kind in these early recordings, making records that were cathartic rituals for player and listener both. It's guaranteed you'll never hear anything like this music, which demonstrates a huge degree of psychological and spiritual insight. Many people are tempted to laugh when confronted with this band's music, so bleak and full of loathing it seems at first, and it's understandable when the other alternative--to take them seriously--seems too painful...But Michael Gira's is a truly individuated musical and philosophical stance. "Hanging" on disc two is one of the most powerful pieces of organized sound I've ever heard, some kind of Gnostic hymn directed at a blameworthy God...But prepare yourself to be pummelled by bass frequencies and the most beautifully dissonant vocal harmonies."

Bloodsweatandnotears

fear-of-pop | portugal | 12/27/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"the first 4 albuns of the swans are an aquired taste..people who adore korn or staind will never understand this music because this was not made for them...it's that simple. there are no catchy lyrics, no melodies no handsome faces: this is music made to punish the listener: repetative, pounding, abrasive and suffocating: exactly what the mainstream despises. michael gira's screams and rants about power, humiliation and control are about as real as it gets.. this is true sonic masochism, try it someday.. if you like it spread the word..."

Astonishingly Difficult

djGardenGnome | San Francisco | 09/20/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I bought this double album in 2000, while in college and rapidly expanding my highly eclectic music collection. I sold it within the year. I simply could not handle it. Open-minded but not knowing what to expect, I was scared by this dismal noise and shockingly bleak poetry. Though I haven't heard this "music" for quite awhile now, I still distinctly remember the sound and the dull, dark pressure it caused in my chest, as I forced myself to sit through both discs in their entirety. How unfortunate for me now that this CD is difficult to find, as my tastes have expanded to include extremely challenging music. This early SWANS material is such a challenge."

A big wall of noise

S. Whiting | Saint Louis, MO United States | 10/23/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"i was first turned on to the Swans, by hearing tools front man talk about them in a radio interview, and they played a clip of COWARD and i liked it. the beat was so dense, and repetitive, that it does create some sort of weird effect. All the songs, have up to a maximum of 2 different parts, but at the intensity that the Swans play, and the loudness of it all, its hard to ignore, and at some times can be a little hard to enjoy. If you are used to radio music, i highly advise that you dont look into this band at all. it is very repetative, and and not at all radio material. The lyrics are very straight foreward, and are in your face. Michael Gira is speaking into the music, and fighting with it. i can imagine that this band would be awesome to see live. if you are a fan of noise rock, and industrial art house music, i reccomend you check out the swans."